The Many Ghosts of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Gettysburg Pictures

Civil War Cannons

A real picture of a girl next to a cannon, with an unknown mist or ghost beside her.

Introducing the Most Haunted US City - Gettysburg

Have you ever had the privileged ability of visiting Gettysburg, Pennsylvania? I have and I can honestly say that it is an experience that will be ingrained in my mind for many years to come. Gettysburg is a richly historic area, boasting some of the most famously haunted battlefields involved in the American Civil War. But with a history so bloody and sorrowful, there have been numerous, spine-tingling stories of the many ghosts of Gettysburg. Tourists visit the haunted Gettysburg battlefield every year, hoping to capture a set of Gettysburg ghost pictures. Some of them capture the Gettysburg ghosts on film, while others experience other paranormal phenomena. Is it true that Gettysburg, Pennsylvania is the most haunted city in the United States? Let's do some digging into haunted Gettysburg's gruesome history and legendary ghost stories.

Why is Gettysburg Haunted?

In July of 1863, the bloodiest battle of the American Civil War ravaged the somewhat quiet city of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The single reason that the Gettysburg battle is called the "bloodiest" battle is due to the incredibly large amount of casualties. Somewhere between 46,000 and 51,000 Union and Confederate soldiers lost their lives on the battlefields of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in a period of just three days! If you surf the internet for pictures of the bloody Gettysburg battle, you will ultimately find some very disturbing and unnerving pictures of dead soldiers...their bloody, broken bodies peppered all over the fields and hills of Gettysburg. With a sorrowful imprint upon the land such as this one, it is probable that hauntings of all different kinds should be experienced on haunted Gettysburg's blood-soaked lands. To this day, over a million wide-eyed and unexpecting (or some perhaps expecting) tourists visit the haunted Gettysburg battlefield every year, in search for Gettysburg ghost pictures or their own Gettysburg ghost stories.

Gettysburg Ghost Stories

Gettysburg ghost stories are some of the most hair-raising and unsettling ghost stories I have ever heard. There are three particular hot spots for ghosts of the Gettysburg phenomenon - Devil's Den, Round Top, and the infamous bloody Plum Run.

Devil's Den is a patch of rocks where some Confederates took shelter and used it as a means to skillfully attack the Union soldiers. Devil's Den is now well-known for many hauntings, including the ghost behind the rock, shown in uniform to the right. Another spooky ghost of Devil's Den appeared to two different tourists, at two different times; he was a man who was dressed and appeared very disheveled, with a wide brim hat and bare feet. Each time he would point in a direction towards Plum Run (another portion of Gettysburg's blood-stained land), in an effort to get the people to visit Plum Run. It turns out that both tourists' description of this man was exactly the same and historically matches that of what would have been a Confederate soldier from the state of Tennessee. One would think that these particular Gettysburg ghost stories are enough, but Devil's Den is only one of many haunted Gettysburg locations.

Plum Run is another haunted Gettysburg area with a creek, located directly across from the Devil's Den and is also said to be a residence of more ghosts of Gettysburg. Not just one particular ghost haunts this area of Gettysburg, there are probably hundreds; moreover, there have been dozens upon dozens of EVPs caught on tape from the entire area of Plum Run. In some of the EVPs, we can hear the sounds of emanating gunshots and also what sound like the disturbed ghosts of men, yelling and screaming. Numerous paranormal investigators have taken readings at the haunted Plum Run and seem to find similar EVPs and other technological readings that confirm that this spot is in fact haunted, synonymous to the rest of the rampantly haunted Gettysburg battlefield. Plum Run is perhaps more well-known as "Bloody Run", due to a scarlet-red color that seems to be seeping through the creek running through its center. I am sure it is called Bloody Run for more obvious reasons, as well. When one visits this haunted place, one can almost picture the bloody bodies of soldiers spread out over the land...one can feel that hair-raising sensation down the spine, as if someone is standing right behind you...

Round Top is a small rocky hill, a tiny bit south of Gettysburg, and is another extremely haunted battle location. Some of the ghost stories told about Round Top include various equipment malfunctions, strange gunshot and screaming sounds at night, disappearing and then reappearing memorial statues, and ghost sightings. One of the most famous of the Gettysburg ghost stories occurred on the 130th anniversary of the infamous battle of Gettysburg. There were two actors, or in this case re-enactors, who were standing on top of Little Round Top when they noticed another re-eneactor approaching them. This re-enactor had a perfect costume, complete with the smell of sulfur (gunpowder back then carried the scent). The Civil War-reminiscent man looked at the re-enactors (who by the way were very impressed with his Civil War costuming) and said, "Weren't some fight we had today, huh boys?". And with that, the sulfur-scented man handed them a couple of catridges, telling them that they would "need them tomorrow." It should be noted that one of the re-enactors that day was a professor of Gettysburg college and when the cartridges were handed to him, he specifically noticed the way they were neatly wrapped in bees wax, exactly like they would have been during the Civil War! The professor peered up to respond to the ghostly man and lo-and-behold, he had vanished into thin air! The cartridges were brought back to the college and DNA testing was performed, dating them to 1863! It should also be noted that Federal law states that no live rounds are to be brought onto the Gettysburg battlefields at any time.

In addition to the soldier ghosts of Gettysburg, there are many other ghosts seemingly destined to wander the entire town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Many historical buildings are haunted with ghosts from the Civil War era, including ghostly women and children. One particular tourist submitted a story online which told of a very eerie experience that she had during her trip to haunted Gettysburg. She tells a ghost story of many children seeming to follow her throughout the town, during which time she snapped many pictures of them. They were all dressed in Civil War period outfits, which the lady found odd but thought nothing of it at the time. When she returned home and had the film developed, none of the children were in the pictures she had taken of them! Nothing but green mist filled the entire roll of pictures she had taken throughout haunted Gettysburg that day! Speculation and process of elimination told her that these children were indeed more of the many ghosts of Gettysburg.

Why is Gettysburg so haunted? Why are there so many Gettysburg ghost stories and even more Gettysburg ghost pictures? The concept is more than clear to me...Gettysburg is a place with a huge imprint of the past upon it. More specifically, it is a place that hosted one of the bloodiest battles in US history, so it only makes sense that there would be paranormal phenomenon occurring here on a daily basis. Whether these phenomena are ghosts or if they are merely glimpses into a sorrowful past, I do not know. But one thing is for sure...the ghosts of Gettysburg will be talked about and searched out for decades to come. There will always be someone else with new Gettysburg ghost stories to tell or new Gettysburg ghost pictures to show off.

Take for instance the video I have posted above and to the right; if you have the time to view this video, you will have the pleasure of viewing one of the most authentic ghost videos ever captured in haunted Gettysburg! The day this was taken, a man and his daughter were visiting the haunted Gettysburg battlefields, and the man was video-taping different portions of their trip. He and his daughter noticed something strange moving from the woods directly across from where they were standing and began to film the movement. What looks like ghosts of Gettysburg soldiers moving in a circular motion up a hill, proceeded to play out in front of their very eyes...and, they caught this paranormal phenomenon on video! The video has been professionally examined for signs of fraud, but the only theory is that the a piece of plexi-glass could have been stood up on the hill and then an image reflected from a TV or projector behind it; however, none of the other visitors that day noticed anything strange...and honestly, I don't feel as if this man was intelligent enough to pull off a hoax like this.

If you ever have the privilege of visiting these haunted Gettysburg sites, be sure to bring a camera and maybe a voice recorder to capture your own evidence of the Gettysburg hauntings...that is, if the ghosts allow you to do so! Just do yourself a favor and go with a friend or family member, this way if you run into a soldier from the other side, you will be more prepared to handle the spine-tingling experience...

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Jay C OBrien

2 months agofrom Houston, TX USA

Perhaps you could address the question of why people become soldiers in the first place. Don't people know we should Not kill each other? Both Northern and Southern solders had their respective "Causes," but it is wrong to kill another person. Can't people learn to resolve differences without bloodshed?

DragonflyTreasure

6 years agofrom on the breeze.........

Great hub, Heard many stories about Gettysburg. My son visited some friends in Pennsylvania and had hoped to get to Gettysburg, but didn't make it. Very disappointed. Voting up ?

Marguerite Arotin

6 years agofrom Parma, Ohio

We had a great time Kitty honey and I still have some pictures posted at the pack website at http://www.gccpack263.org under the news tab. My son just crossed over to boy scout and here's hoping he'll get to go again as boy scout. Due to time constraints, we missed checking out the Devil's Den but hiked through both round tops and the national cemetery. It was cool too because one of the boys In my former den adores Abraham Lincoln so seeing the Lincoln monument there and the spot where Abraham Lincoln gave the Gettysburg address was quite a thrill for him. I hope the boys never forget the trip. I know I won't :)

Raevyn14

6 years agofrom Tecumseh, Oklahoma

There is another ghost at gettysburg, Jennie Wade. She was the only civilian death during the battle of gettysburg, she was shot in the base of the spine, then carried down to the basement of her house by union soldiers.

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

6 years agofrom Summerland

Marguerite Arotin - That sounds like it was fun. Thanks for reading.

CLeffelman - So glad it helped you out with your book. Good luck and thanks!

CLeffelman

6 years ago

I really enjoyed your article. I used to live in Maryland so we'd taken several trips to Gettysburg. I miss being able to visit since I'm now in San Antonio, TX. I'm currently writing a book for young adults about "Haunted Gettysburg" and your article has given me some great ideas. Thanks!

Marguerite Arotin

7 years agofrom Parma, Ohio

Will do on the pictures Kitty and both me and the one dad at our den meeting also told the kids that we're sure the ghosts if they make an appearance on that night won't harm them. That they are prob only there to guard the battlefields :). I have the weekend pretty much planned out for the kids and was so excited when I got the permit to be able to camp on the battlefield from the National Park Service. This is my last year as den mom since my boys will be crossing over to boy scouts by February. I really wanted to take the kids somewhere cool to camp before they cross over. I really hope this will be an amazing experience for them and that they'll never forget it :D

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

Bretsuki - I totally checked out that hub and I believe it is definitely a ghost! Great picture to put into a hub and into a collection of ghostly pictures. :)

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

Marguerite Arotin - Oh, no! Don't scare those little boys! :) To elaborate on your upcoming camping trip, I camped there as a little girl with my grandparents and never saw or experienced anything ghostly! But maybe that's because I had no idea it was haunted! Please take a lot of pictures and let me know if anything strange comes out in the pictures. I'd love to hear how the boys do, too. :) Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a blast (no pun intended)!

Marguerite Arotin

7 years agofrom Parma, Ohio

Great hub Kitty and love how you have a map of the haunted locales. I'll be camping with my boy scout den in the McMillan woods youth campground on Labor Day weekend this year. I have plans to hike the grounds with the kids so I'll let you know if we see anything. I think I might have freaked the boys a little though by mentioning how haunted Gettysburg is at our last den meeting ;)

William Elliott

7 years agofrom California USA

Hello kittythedreamer, I actually wrote a hub myself which shows the picture with all details as to the circumstance, the title is "Gettysburg Ghost Photograph? I didn't want to put the URL or anything incase I was accused of spam.

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

Bretsuki - I'm so glad you enjoyed it. Wow, you have a ghostly picture from Gettysburg? I would love to hear more about what's in the picture, if you could! I am a believer in spirits and the paranormal, though in this day and age it is smart to be a bit skeptical of ghost pictures and videos that many scam artists seem to be putting on the internet. Nice to meet you!

William Elliott

7 years agofrom California USA

Hello Kittythedreamer, a really good hub, voted up and awesome. I was always suspicious of ghost or spirit photographs, until I took a photograph at Gettysburg, near the Virginia/Robert E. Lee equestrian statue. It appears rather like a couple of the pictures on your hub. , I cannot explain my photograph, and I know that I didn't use trickery.

There are many who may dismiss these pictures as tricks, some may be but some might be just what they appear to be. Photographs of ghosts or spirits. Great Hub. Thanks.

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

beth - you don't know how much that means to me. Thank you, I'll be emailing you soon. You rock.

Beth Perry

7 years agofrom Tennesee

kitty asked "I'm working on a novel right now, though it isn't paranormal...but I want to write mainly in the paranormal topics. Do you know anything about doing that?"

As a matter of fact, yeah lol. If you visit http:anyahoward.com you'll find my paranormal romance website. Go to the About the Author page and you should find my email. Contact and maybe I can offer some advice about pubs to look into.

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

epigramman - I love history and ghosts sprinkled in the mix makes it all the more merrier! Sounds like we have that in common for sure. Ohh, thank you so very much for giving me a link...that's really awesome of you. I'll let you know if my traffic rises...and I'll give you props my friend! :)

epigramman

7 years ago

...well Kitty you've got me dreaming about your hubs because in this one you have combined two of my favorite subjects - ghosts and the (American) Civil War .....I will post this beautiful and informative hub to my Facebook page with a direct link back here so hopefully more people can see your great work ....

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

Hey, goody7! Glad you enjoyed this hub and thanks for posting the link...it doesn't bother me at all...in fact, I welcome it. Thanks and have a great week.

goody7

7 years agofrom over there under the sycamore tree

This is a very well written hub Kitty. I've been to Gettysburg many times, and I find this topic to be totally fascinating. I put a link from this hub to my own ghostly hub, which has become known as ghost central. You should get a lot more traffic this way as well. If you do not care for the link, then please just let me know and I'll remove it for you. Keep on hubbing.

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

Rod - I haven't seen anything about paranormal activity at pickett's charge, but that's a good question! I'll have to look into that! Thanks for commenting. :)

Rod Marsden

7 years agofrom Wollongong, NSW, Australia

This was where the South's hopes were dashed. The war went on but there wasn't any real chance of a Southern victory. Are there ghosts where Pickett's charge took place? Pickett never forgave Lee for the ordering of that charge. The Southerners went to Gettysburg to obtain footwear so you could say it was fought over boots.

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

cogerson - Thanks so much! Did you take any pictures of the battlefields or buildings? I'd love to see them!

UltimateMovieRankings

7 years agofrom Virginia

Excellent hub, I would think that Gettysburg would be an excellent place for ghosts, I was in Gettysburg about 3 weekends ago.....beautiful place with lots of history.....voted up and useful

Joyce Haragsim

7 years agofrom Southern Nevada

Remind me not to there because I've felt cold breezes going across the back of my legs for no reason.

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

Not really, I don't know how to go about doing something like that, as crazy as that sounds. I would love to, as one of my writing goals is to get published. I'm working on a novel right now, though it isn't paranormal...but I want to write mainly in the paranormal topics. Do you know anything about doing that?

Beth Perry

7 years agofrom Tennesee

I love this article, kitty! Have you ever considered submitting a book proposal about ghost sightings to a publisher?

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

WillStarr - Thanks...you're awesome too! :)

Jeannieinabottle - glad you thought it was cool...since you are the coolest of them all. ;) I love that photo the most, too..though I have a bad feeling it was faked...but I'm hoping not! It just seems to good to be true...

Fay - Oh my gosh! Really? You don't know how good that makes me feel! I really needed to hear that today. Thank you so much. That was a ray of sunshine on an overwhelmingly stressful day for me. I appreciate it, love. Blessings to you and your family, and your grandson!

Fay Paxton

7 years ago

Kitty, you do a magnificent job of sharing the historic phantoms with us. I thought you should know, I share your hubs with my grandson, who finds them absolutely thrilling. That alone makes them up and awesome.

Jeannie InABottle

7 years agofrom Baltimore, MD

This is a really cool hub. Some of those photos are amazing. The photo of the soldier at Devil's Den is so clear!

WillStarr

7 years agofrom Phoenix, Arizona

Awesome Hub!

Alastar Packer

7 years agofrom North Carolina

Absolutely awesome article kitty. You've done a superb looking hub here.Gettysburg may well be the most haunted place in America; can one now, even begin to imagine or feel the massive amounts of wide ranging emotions unleashed on those three days. Kitty please take this in the spirit it's meant as I even see this occasionally in books on the Civil War. The casualties for the South were roughly 28,000 & the North 23,000. These figures include kia, wounded & missing. I know it's a minor thing but this is such a great article...at any rate, across the board n up!

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

Dahoglund - very very true, my friend! I believe any place that has seen the ruins of war has a lasting imprint of energy and ghosts.

Jo - sounds good, will do. :)

Jo_Goldsmith11

7 years ago

I live in the mountains of Kentucky. You can read my bio for more information. Take care

Don A. Hoglund

7 years agofrom Wisconsin Rapids

Gettysburg seems a likely spot for paranormal activity.The Civil War was very emotionally intense, which seems to be one of the criteria for such phenomena.

AUTHOR

Nicole Canfield

7 years agofrom Summerland

Hi, Jo! Nice to meet you. Erie is a beautiful place, though...at least from what I remember when I visited it. You have never heard of the ghosts of gettysburg? That's surprising, especially because you lived in PA for awhile. Oh, well...guess we learn something new everyday! Thanks for commenting!

Jo_Goldsmith11

7 years ago

What a really interesting hub! I never knew about this. I was born and raised most of my life in Erie Pa. We call it the "mistake by the lake". I will surely not visit Gettysburg. I do not want to encounter any ghosts.

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